SSF Golden 50 Conference: “SSF’s service in education sector commendable," Minister Zameer Ahmed
Bengaluru: Bengaluru's Palace Grounds hosted the golden fifty grand conference of the Sunni Students Federation (SSF) on Sunday, where Housing and Minority Affairs Minister Zameer Ahmed commended the organization's significant contributions to education.
Minister Zameer Ahmed praised SSF for its five decades of service in the field of education, stating that the organization had become a global model. He emphasized the vital role of education in the country's prosperity and acknowledged SSF's frontline involvement in this endeavor, with many of its alumni now serving as IAS and IPS officers.
The minister also commended SSF leader A.P. Aboobaker Musliyar Kantapuram for his influential role within the organization. He highlighted the Karnataka Congress government's commitment to supporting minority community students in their educational pursuits, especially higher education, through various programs and assistance.
Minister Zameer Ahmed mentioned plans to introduce Kannada language teaching in Madrasas within the state and the consideration of establishing a Madrasa Board. He drew inspiration from Kerala's Madrasa education system as a model.
SSF State President Hafiz Sufiyan emphasized the organization's educational priorities and its commitment to running thousands of madrasas. He emphasized that SSF members have not been associated with any detrimental activities in society.
The conference also featured the presence of notable figures such as Kerala Muslim Jamaat General Secretary Syed Kalilul Bukhari Thangal, Waqf Board President Anwar Basha, Former President Shafi Saadi, Mufti Aboobaker, Nasir Lucky Star, and others.
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Fascism will not be allowed to enter through the back door of vote rigging: CM Siddaramaiah
New Delhi: Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Sunday asserted that fascism would not be allowed to enter India “through the back door of vote rigging” and called upon citizens to collectively defend the country’s democratic foundations.
Speaking after participating in an anti–vote rigging protest organised in New Delhi, Siddaramaiah said the gathering was not merely a political demonstration but a stand to protect Indian democracy. “We have come to the heart of our republic not as Congress workers or voters, but as protectors of Indian democracy,” he said.
Emphasising the importance of the right to vote, Siddaramaiah said it was the most sacred right guaranteed by the Constitution and the very foundation of democracy.
“Through voting, a farmer shapes the future of his children, a worker safeguards his dignity, a youth realises dreams, and a nation expresses its collective will,” he said.
He accused the BJP-led Union government of attempting to undermine this right through what he termed systematic vote rigging, including the alleged misuse of the special revision of electoral rolls. “This power is being stolen repeatedly,” he alleged.
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Warning against authoritarian tendencies, Siddaramaiah said history had shown that dictatorship does not begin with violence but with the misuse of institutions and manipulation of democratic systems.
“Across the world, authoritarian regimes pretend to protect democracy while quietly subverting it. This is what the BJP is doing today,” he charged.
He alleged that the ruling party was controlling institutions, intimidating electoral machinery, distorting voter lists, suppressing voter turnout in opposition strongholds, and misusing money and power. “This is not mere maladministration. Vote rigging is an attack on the very idea of India,” he said.
Siddaramaiah further claimed that governments formed through “stolen votes” could not be considered democratic.
“Such regimes survive through fear, fraud and distortion of the people’s mandate,” he said, adding that vote rigging posed the biggest threat to the republic since Independence.
Praising Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, Siddaramaiah said he had shown exceptional courage in exposing alleged irregularities in voter lists, booth-level manipulation and “systematic, organised vote rigging” across several states, including Karnataka, Haryana and Bihar.
Referring to Karnataka, Siddaramaiah cited Mahadevpura and Aland constituencies as examples highlighted by Gandhi. In Mahadevpura, he said, thousands of allegedly fake and fraudulent voter entries and discrepancies in electoral rolls pointed to a narrow BJP victory. In Aland, he said, attempts were made to remove the names of legitimate voters ahead of the 2023 Assembly elections.
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He noted that a Special Investigation Team (SIT) had recently filed a chargesheet accusing seven persons, including a former BJP MLA and his son, of attempting to delete the names of around 6,000 voters in Aland.
“This is a significant legal step in the fight against vote rigging,” he said.
Siddaramaiah concluded by stating that the fight against vote rigging was rooted in constitutional morality, Ambedkarite thought and the core principle of democracy. “Sovereignty belongs to the people, not to any party, regime or those who seek to steal elections,” he said.
